8 ms·

Ask HN: Smartphone As Exclusive Word-Processor Device? (& Pinephone)

4 points by thx 5y ago

there’s times i prefer writing longform writes on a smartphone - is there such a thing as a smartphone shaped/sized electronic that prioritizes a Word Processor App? is this a good use case for a Pinephone? have read about them here on several occasions & was wondering if anyone on HN had a personal review on how a Pinephone may double as a “mini-mac” to type notes/outlines/stories on? i.e. is interface nice? thanks for reading

PaulHoule 5y ago
I type long comments into HN with tablets and it is a bad habit because it makes me look brain-damaged. It seems like the spell checker is possessed by the devil but it is even worse if I turn it off.
- thx 5y ago
  yeah some tablets have bad ai spellcheck tho apple’s isn’t great either have you ever used a Pinephone?
  - PaulHoule 5y ago
    Nope. There was a time I would go to hackathons with a Barnes and Noble Nook and a bluetooth mouse and keyboard and a little stand and log in to a cloud server through ssh or RDP. You could do the same w/ any Android tablet or phone. It was certainly more stylish than any mac or gaming laptop.
    - thx 5y ago
      That’s pretty cool & now curious about what section of B&N you did that in
aaronchall 5y ago
I would expect you to be able to get that to work on a Pinephone. I used to carry a tablet with a bluetooth keyboard (clamshell design) that I would ssh into a server to code with (when not using Termux itself as the coding environment). Again, it was cool, but most everyone else had laptops.
- thx 5y ago
  Wow I need to get with it / jump on it. Even if everyone else had laptops I really like not having to interface with a screen “staring” back at me. (It’s my experience that typing on a smartphone / tablet allows one to put it down a moment & “have a thought” without feeling the “default need” to be always looking back at a monitor, which I’ve come to find occasionally distracting) In essence, imo you guys are onto something. Will probably give Pinephone a go sometime this Summer to test out as a longform electronic writing device
  - aaronchall 5y ago
    Here's the case I had, a review from 2014: https://the-gadgeteer.com/2014/06/12/zagg-autofit-bluetooth-keyboard-7-inch-tablets-review/ https://the-gadgeteer.com/2014/06/12/zagg-autofit-bluetooth-... They don't make it anymore, sadly. I loved that it held my 7 inch tablet and worked with it wirelessly, and that the hinge was stiff enough to hold it up as I used it on my lap or standing on the subway. If only the keyboard was weighted it would have been stable to put on a table without the kickstand in the back, but that was a fine compromise given everything else it delivered for not a lot more money. I hope your Pinephone experiment goes well. I'm optimistic for them.
    - thx 5y ago
      That is Awesome & looks Ultra-Portable Have a feeling with fashions repeating & all something like the Nexus 7 + BT Keyboard (full-functionality lite-tech) may someday make a comeback Really like the idea of a low-cost pc / tablet that’s always in the backpack And thanks!

4 points by thx 5y ago

PaulHoule 5y ago

I type long comments into HN with tablets and it is a bad habit because it makes me look brain-damaged. It seems like the spell checker is possessed by the devil but it is even worse if I turn it off.

thx 5y ago
yeah some tablets have bad ai spellcheck tho apple’s isn’t great either have you ever used a Pinephone?
- PaulHoule 5y ago
  Nope. There was a time I would go to hackathons with a Barnes and Noble Nook and a bluetooth mouse and keyboard and a little stand and log in to a cloud server through ssh or RDP. You could do the same w/ any Android tablet or phone. It was certainly more stylish than any mac or gaming laptop.
  - thx 5y ago
    That’s pretty cool & now curious about what section of B&N you did that in

aaronchall 5y ago

I would expect you to be able to get that to work on a Pinephone. I used to carry a tablet with a bluetooth keyboard (clamshell design) that I would ssh into a server to code with (when not using Termux itself as the coding environment). Again, it was cool, but most everyone else had laptops.

thx 5y ago
Wow I need to get with it / jump on it. Even if everyone else had laptops I really like not having to interface with a screen “staring” back at me. (It’s my experience that typing on a smartphone / tablet allows one to put it down a moment & “have a thought” without feeling the “default need” to be always looking back at a monitor, which I’ve come to find occasionally distracting) In essence, imo you guys are onto something. Will probably give Pinephone a go sometime this Summer to test out as a longform electronic writing device
- aaronchall 5y ago
  Here's the case I had, a review from 2014: https://the-gadgeteer.com/2014/06/12/zagg-autofit-bluetooth-keyboard-7-inch-tablets-review/ https://the-gadgeteer.com/2014/06/12/zagg-autofit-bluetooth-... They don't make it anymore, sadly. I loved that it held my 7 inch tablet and worked with it wirelessly, and that the hinge was stiff enough to hold it up as I used it on my lap or standing on the subway. If only the keyboard was weighted it would have been stable to put on a table without the kickstand in the back, but that was a fine compromise given everything else it delivered for not a lot more money. I hope your Pinephone experiment goes well. I'm optimistic for them.
  - thx 5y ago
    That is Awesome & looks Ultra-Portable Have a feeling with fashions repeating & all something like the Nexus 7 + BT Keyboard (full-functionality lite-tech) may someday make a comeback Really like the idea of a low-cost pc / tablet that’s always in the backpack And thanks!